Mauricio Pochettino has led his first training session as Chelsea manager, and there's plenty to explore. The 51-year-old signed a two-year deal, which includes the option of a further 12-months, keeping him at Stamford Bridge until 2025.
While new signings like Christopher Nkunku and Nicolas Jackson were not present, Pochettino was joined by a handful of Blues players who could very well make up the core his squad next season. From Reece James and Ben Chilwell to a few surprise inclusions, football.london has taken a look at the major talking points from Pochettino's first training session.
Casadei and Santos chance
Cesare Casadei and Andrey Santos will be desperate to impress in the early stages of pre-season. Following the departures of N'Golo Kante, Mateo Kovacic and Ruben Loftus-Cheek, with Mason Mount expected to follow suit, there are plenty of midfield slots in the first-team squad up for grabs.
Casadei, who joined Chelsea from Inter Milan last summer, almost led Italy to Under-20s World Cup glory in June and his impressive performances certainly caught the eye. Despite having lost to Uruguay in the final, he enjoyed a spectacular tournament winning both the player of the tournament and the golden boot.
As for Santos, he's enjoyed his summer too. The 19-year-old was a standout performer at the Under-20 South American Championship, netting six goals in six games from defensive midfield, before making his senior debut not too soon after.
James and Chiwell return
Reece James and Ben Chilwell both appear to be training on the grass again following their respective injuries. The right-back suffered an injury-ridden season, tweaking a hamstring issue towards the end of the campaign.
All in all, James featured 25 games for Chelsea last term, starting just 14 times. As for the left-back, he appeared to pull his hamstring during the 3-1 win against Bournemouth and proceeded to miss each of Chelsea's remaining fixtures.
READ MORE: Chelsea news and transfers LIVE: Medical complete, Caicedo 'favourites', £80m demand, Mount heir
Maatsen opportunity
While Marc Cucurella and Chilwell may stand in his way in the pecking order, Ian Maatsen has a huge opportunity to force himself into the first-team. The 21-year-old played a major role in helping Burnley secure promotion from the Championship last season, so he's certainly one to watch.
Broja hope
Armando Broja featured at Cobham in some capacity. Chelsea were without the 21-year-old striker for the entire season due to a knee injury he suffered in a mid-season friendly against Aston Villa.
His potential return comes as a huge boost as Pochettino hopes to breed healthy competition between the Albanian and new signing Nicolas Jackson.
